Earlier this month, RMHS DECA took a three-day trip to Boston to present their projects to judges at the State Career Development Conference.
From February 27th to March 1st, 16 members of the RMHS DECA program traveled to Boston’s Seaport district to compete against other Massachusetts DECA students for an opportunity to advance to the international competition in Orlando, Florida in April. Two of RMHS’s own- Sabrina Sweat (‘25) and Paige Cusolito (‘25) placed in the top 6 in their event, Independent Business Plan, qualifying them for this competition.
The competition is broken down into five main categories, each with different subcategories. The categories include marketing, finance, entrepreneurship, hospitality and tourism, and business management.
Based on these categories, there are two different project types. Written Projects and Roleplays. For written projects, students are assigned the task of writing a 20-page business plan and preparing a 15-minute presentation to show to the judges. For roleplays, students are to choose a category and are then given a scenario and 15 minutes to prepare before speaking to the judges.
With 4,237 high school chapters, DECA (Distributive Education Clubs of America) has a mission of “preparing emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe.” But there are also social benefits that come from this program as well.
RMHS business teacher Ms. Rosenfeld discussed how while the kids are at the competition, other social events are happening at the same time such as a dance and games. “It’s a really good place to meet people from everywhere,” she stated.
DECA student Devyn McKenna (‘25) stated that DECA has provided her with strong connections and experiences that will stick with her well past high school.
